Focus of Gandhi protests / TUE 3-10-26 / 8-pointer in Scrabble / Mediterranean dish whose name can be translated as "pampered daddy" / Bizet's "Habanera," for one / All-time best-selling female rapper worldwide / Version of a car model / Sol's sister, in Roman myth / Eddie who voiced Donkey in "Shrek"

Constructor: Daniel Bodily

Relative difficulty: Medium-Challenging (**for a Tuesday**)

[19A: "Star Wars" antagonist"]

THEME: J-LO (72A: Bronx-born star, to fans ... or a phonetic hint to 3-, 8-, 17-, 32- and 45-Down) — five Down answers end in "J," so in each case the "J" is ... "low" (visually, within its answer)

Theme answers:

• BRITISH RAJ (3D: Focus of Gandhi protests)
• FRESH OJ (45D: Drink that's just been squeezed, say)
• BABA GHANOUJ (17D: Mediterranean dish whose name can be translated as "pampered daddy")
• RADIO DJ (8D: One playing 45s, informally)
• NICKI MINAJ (32D: All-time best-selling female rapper worldwide)

Word of the Day: SKOPJE (70A: Capital of North Macedonia) —

Skopje is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultural centre of the country. As of the 2021 census, the city had a population of 526,502. Skopje covers 571.46 km² (220.64 mi²) and includes both urban and rural areas, bordered by several municipalities and close to the borders of Kosovo and Serbia. [...] In 1912, following the Balkan Wars, Skopje was annexed by the Kingdom of Serbia. It became part of Yugoslavia after World War I and, following World War II, became the capital of the Socialist Republic of Macedonia, one of its constituent republics. In 1963, a major earthquake devastated the city, after which it was largely rebuilt with international assistance. Skopje became the capital of independent North Macedonia in 1991. (wikipedia) // North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the north. It constitutes approximately the northern third of the larger geographical region of Macedonia. Skopje, the capital and largest city, is home to a quarter of the country's population of over 1.83 million. The majority of the residents are ethnic Macedonians, a South Slavic people. Albanians form a significant minority at around 25%, followed by Turks, Roma, Serbs, Bosniaks, Aromanians and a few other minorities. (wikipedia)

• • •

Today I learned there is a North Macedonia, but no South Macedonia, or even just a plain old Macedonia. Just North Macedonia. The Balkans remain the part of the world to which I am the most map-blind. Like, I cannot keep all the countries straight. I grew up with Yugoslavia (Winter Olympics, 1984! That's how I learned Sarajevo existed). Then everything went to hell in that region in the early '90s, and by the end of the decade there were all these new countries, or new-old countries, and I have not made it a priority to go back and look at the region and figure out what and where they all are. And SKOPJE (pronounced "SCOPE-ya!") ... if you had shown me that name earlier this morning, I definitely could've told you it was a city, and I almost certainly would've placed it somewhere in the Balkans, but otherwise ... no clue. Needed many crosses (beyond the "J") to recall it today. This was one of several things that made this puzzle somewhat tougher than a regular Tuesday. Not tough tough, obviously. Just a little more challenging than usual.

Today's puzzle was another case of my liking the theme but not being exceptionally fond of the execution or the fill. There just aren't enough great longer answers ending in "J," so some of these come off as a little contrived. FRESH OJ also feels like you just slapped an adjective in front of OJ. Do people still drink frozen OJ? I think I heard recently that those cylinders of frozen orange juice concentrate (so familiar from my childhood) were being discontinued. Yep, confirmed. Anyway, if you do distinguish between kinds of orange juice, I believe the term is "fresh-squeezed." Also, RADIO DJ felt mildly redundant, as did BRITISH RAJ. Are there other RAJs besides the BRITISH RAJ? To be fair, none of today's theme answers sounded outright alien. They just seemed like common abbreviations with an adjectival modifier in front of them. BABA GHANOUJ and NICKI MINAJ both work great. I had real trouble with the spelling of BABA GHANOUJ. I knew the answer, but not the spelling. When I first saw the clue, I didn't understand the theme, and so that "J" ending, yikes. I think I must've imagined a "SH" ending? That's how it's pronounced (to my ears), and oh look, that's how it's most commonly spelled. Good, I'm not going crazy. Anyway, the "J" ... when I finally got it, I thought "oh, right. That spelling." But it didn't come to me straight away. As for NICKI MINAJ, she's a right-wing stooge now, so ... no (further) comment.

The fill on this one was on the weak side, largely because the grid is super-choppy and loaded with short stuff. IOTA ARIA ADHOC OFT AFAR ... that's quite a chain of repeaters. And there are more of them, everywhere. They really deaden the grid, though the longer Acrosses do give the grid some life back. That SW corner, though, is really rough. ON ZOOM ... my neck stiffened up just writing that. Wince City. Woof and oof. I DUNNO about that answer, man. Outside of the corner (the SKOPJE corner), I didn't have too much trouble anywhere except the NE, where writing in COURT instead of FLIRT (7D: Show romantic interest, in a way) really cost me some time. How much time? I dunno. Seconds? It's Tuesday, things go pretty fast no matter what the "relative difficulty" is. 

Bullets:

• 36A: 8-pointer in Scrabble ("J" TILE) — pretty sure I audibly booed this answer. Cheap way to get your "J" in.
• 31A: ___ Owens (birth name of Queen Latifah) (DANA) — a good artist to listen to if you've ever had it up to here (with ... whatever):

• 58A: Apt anagram of BRUSH (SHRUB) — because they are similar types of plant, I guess. Although if you look up "brush," the word you will see is "scrub (vegetation)," not SHRUB.
• 6D: Version of a car model (TRIM) — this threw me because I think of TRIM as having to do with the aesthetics of the car (the exterior and interior finish), and that's correct, but something about the wording of the clue made me think the answer was going to describe a whole-ass car, not just the aesthetic. The clue's not wrong, my brain just couldn't process it.
• 27D: Comedian Bargatze (NATE) — an extremely popular comedian I've never seen. I follow some comedians on social media, so I'm aware of the phenomenon that is NATE Bargatze. But I couldn't tell you anything about him except that he is, as I say, very popular, and I think he doesn't really, uh, work blue. Is that still a term people use? Yeah, here we go: he's sometimes called a "clean comedian." He was the highest-grossing stand-up comic of 2024.

That's all. See you next time.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

[Follow Rex Parker on BlueSky and Facebook and Letterboxd]
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Biceps, boastfully / MON 3-9-26 / Zimbalist Jr. of "77 Sunset Strip" / They go to a higher court / Temporary guest from a canine shelter / Period for Fred, Wilma and Pebbles / Birthplace of the bossa nova, informally

Constructor: Christina Iverson and Andrea Carla Michaels

Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium (solved Downs-only)

THEME: BEST ACTRESS (60A: Academy Award category ... or a hint to the starts of the answers to the starred clues) — first words of theme answers are also last names of women who won BEST ACTRESS Oscars:

Theme answers:

• (Sally) FIELD HOCKEY (16A: *Outdoor sport with sticks (1979, 1984))
• (Emma) STONE AGE (25A: *Period for Fred, Wilma and Pebbles (2016, 2023))
• (Jodie) FOSTER DOG (35A: *Temporary guest from a canine shelter (1988, 1991))
• (Halle) BERRY PIE (51A: *Popular fruit dessert (2001))

Word of the Day: EFREM Zimbalist, Jr. (55A: Zimbalist Jr. of "77 Sunset Strip") —

Efrem Zimbalist Jr. (November 30, 1918 – May 2, 2014) was an American actor and theatre producer. Known for his "mellifluous voice and air of sophistication," he was known to television audiences for his starring roles on the crime drama series 77 Sunset Strip (1958–64) and The F.B.I. (1965–74), his recurring role as "Dandy Jim" Buckley on Maverick (1957–58), and as the voice of Alfred Pennyworth in the DC Animated Universe. He also appeared in numerous films and on the Broadway stage. He was a Golden Globe Award winner (out of four total nominations) and a two-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee.

He was the son of classical musicians Efrem Zimbalist and Alma Gluck, and the father of actress Stephanie Zimbalist. In addition to his acting career, Zimbalist was also a decorated veteran of the Second World War, receiving both the Bronze Star and Purple Heart medals. In 1994, Zimbalist received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to television. (wikipedia)

• • •

Let me tell you about the nine-year EFREM Zimbalist drought of the late 20th century. It was the mid-80s. Ronald Reagan had just been re-elected and everyone figured that Zimbalist, who had campaigned for Goldwater 20 years earlier, would soar to even greater crossword prominence in Reagan's America. But as Reagan's second term wore on, EFREM found himself and his father, a famous violinist of the same name, snubbed from the grid, year after year. Some said the EFREM name was blackballed after it got out that Zimbalist Jr. had supported John Anderson in 1980. Some say it was because he made joking comments about "jellybeans" and "astrologers" when asked about Reagan for a 1985 Playboy interview. Some say his disappearance from the grid was a total coincidence. I say those people have no imagination. Anyway, the EFREM Zimabalist Jr. blackout continued under George H.W. Bush, lending more credence to the idea that the Great EFREM Erasure was indeed political payback. After Clinton was elected, EFREM's fortunes changed. Clinton, an avid solver himself, saw an opportunity to leave his mark on the crossword landscape, and one of the first things he did was restore EFREM to crossword prominence. Thus EFREM finally reappeared in 1993 after a nearly nine-year absence, and went on to appear nine (9) more times in the Clinton Era. After that, George W. Bush., as if attempting to outdo Clinton while simultaneously distancing himself from his father's legacy, supported the Zimbalist revival with even greater fervor: EFREM made a whopping twelve (12) appearances during W's presidency. Since then, and particularly following Zimbalist's death in 2014, EFREM enthusiasm has waned, though we've never seen anything close to the nine-year EFREM drought of the late '80s / early '90s. (Note: some of the above is verifiably true—the crossword stats, mostly; and the Goldwater part; the rest, who knows? Maybe)

I want to thank today's puzzle for ... well, reminding me that EFREM Zimbalist Jr. once existed (and that I couldn't pick him out of a line-up on a dare), as well as for reminding me that the Oscars are coming up (Sunday, Mar. 15). As for this theme, it's OK, I guess. A first-words theme. Feels like the kind of thing that's been done before, not terribly imaginative. But timely! I wish there were more to it. I wish the revealer were snappier instead of just literal and explanatory. I wish the fill were a little less ye olde (TET ARS URSA ... EFREM for god's sake). But all in all it's a totally acceptable Monday puzzle. The longer Downs aren't all that long, but they are solid, and even though its letters aren't terribly exciting, I really liked "SEE HERE!" I like quaint indignation. "I say! SEE HERE! That's not cricket!" I had a blarghy feeling about the fill after the NW corner (URSA AOL ESP already had me teetering, and then UNFED tipped me into mild gag territory). But things evened out. I don't really believe BERRY PIE is a thing. What Kind Of Berry!? No way I'm ordering some mystery "BERRY" PIE. That was the one answer that made me grimace when it came into view. But I love FOSTER DOG a ton, and UPSELLS is also pretty fab, so I come out on the thumbs-up side today.

So weird to find out today that so many of the Best Actress Oscar winners who fit this theme (i.e. whose last names are also ordinary words) are also multiple Best Actress Oscar winners. I'd forgotten that Sally Field won two. I can name every movie referred to in today's theme clues except the one Field won for in 1984—I remember the infamous speech ("You like me, you really like me..."), but I'll be damned if I can remember what she won for. Was it Places in the Heart!? [checks with the internet]. It was! Ha! Thank you, brain! Good ol' brain, still working. For now. For the record, the movies referred to today are:

• Sally Field: Norma RAE (of crossword fame!!) (1979); Places in the Heart (1984)
• Emma Stone: La La Land (2016); Poor Things (2023)
• Jodie Foster: The Accused (1988); The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
• Halle Berry: Monster’s Ball (2001)

Stone is nominated again this year for Bugonia, though I think it's something of a foregone conclusion that Jessie Buckley is going to win for Hamnet (a movie I have no interest in seeing ... I can't really explain it ... I like Shakespeare ... I love Paul Mescal ... Jessie Buckley is fantastic ... I think I'm just allergic to Oscar Bait). I just saw Halle Berry in Crime 101, which made me wonder why she isn't in more things. Or maybe she's been in a ton of things and I just missed them all. She is charming in Crime 101 as an insurance agent specializing in "high-wealth" customers who finds herself devalued by her bosses because she's "old" and (therefore?) (allegedly?) losing her ability to hook clients with sex appeal. This is the least plausible part of the movie, as Halle Berry looks stunning at all times. Hard to look at anyone else when she's on screen. But whatever, she plays the part really convincingly and endearingly, and she has an odd and compelling chemistry with Mark Ruffalo (a cop who figures out that Berry has gotten involved in some criminal shenanigans).

Bullets:

• 64A: Vietnamese holiday with a palindromic name (TET) — did we really need the "with a palindromic name" part? TET is one of the most common crossword words there is. Even if you're a total crossword novice and have never heard of TET, those crosses are all easy. No need to do so much handholding, NYT! I know it's Monday, but yeesh.
• 10D: They go to a higher court (APPEALS) — pretty straightforward, but from a Downs-only perspective, this was not so easy for me. The hardest answer of the puzzle, maybe. It just felt like there was some kind of mild trickery going on. Like, maybe the court was a basketball court or a  tennis court, or a food court. Maybe "court" was being used to mean something like a "story" in a building and the answer was something like "escalators" or "elevators" or "stairways." Thankfully, none of these fit, and eventually I was able to infer some of the crosses and get to APPEALS.
• 11D: Round up, as cattle (WRANGLE) — again, easy enough, but with no letters in place I couldn't think of this word at first. The only thing that came to mind was RUSTLE, which wouldn't fit.

• 38D: Biceps, boastfully (GUNS) — this was great. Much more fun to think of arms than to think of ... arms.
• 54D: Group assisting a sheriff (POSSE) — this was grim. Made me think of lynching. I'll take a hip-hop POSSE over a sheriff's POSSE any day.

That's all. See you next time.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

[Follow Rex Parker on BlueSky and Facebook and Letterboxd]
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